Four days of the festival are now behind us. Thank you to all our guests for listening so intently, to the musicians, whose performance inspired such tremendous sonic richness, to our venues for providing such a beautiful setting, and to the technicians and volunteers for their hard work behind the scenes. Without all of this, this huge success would not have been possible!
We’d like to thank Frank Schindelbeck and Kai Prager (main kritik) for their detailed festival reviews.
FURTHER DATES
Mon, Jan. 18, 2027 | Club Voltaire:
Open Stage for Free Improvisation
The opening act will be announced at a later date.
The F.I.M. and its formats
The Forum of Improvised Music is an initiative to promote freely improvised music in Frankfurt.
Open stage for free improvisation:
After the performance of the ‚Opener group‘, interested musicians can improvise and interact in various formations in the second part of the evening.
Formations+
Renowned musicians committed to F.I.M. improvise with each other in changing line-ups (5 formations). The formations are complemented (+) by invited guest musicians.
Formations+ with F.I.M. Frankfurt meets…
In the spirit of networking, F.I.M. invites a national/international initiative of improvised music for musical exchange every year. Formations+ Dance Freely improvising musicians interact with protagonists of the dance scene, supplemented by guest musicians and guest dancers.
„Raumbespielung“:
Free musical interaction and improvisation in public spaces in Frankfurt. Improvisation by 11 musicians at 11 locations with a joint concluding group improvisation.
Female Duo:
In an intimate concert setting, two protagonists of the national improvisation scene improvise in a duo format.
Improv³_
Three musicians playing the same instruments present a solo improvisation and a joint “tutti” performance in a single evening.
Solo_instant composing
Solo improvisations are presented at various venues as part of a small concert series. Each concert series is based on a specific theme.
NEXT EVENT
Fr, Oct. 16, 2026 | 20:00 h | Club Voltaire
Witch ’n‘ Monk + Uli Schiffelholz
As part of the Club Night at the Frankfurt German Jazz Festival
Heidi Heidelberg – g | Mauricio Velasierra – fl | Uli Schiffelholz – dr
This evening, we present the group Witch n Monk, a duo featuring British guitarist and singer Heidi Heidelberg and Colombian flutist Mauricio Velasierra, performing alongside drummer Uli Schiffelholz from the local Rhine-Main scene. Within F.I.M.’s signature “interactive” format—solo, duo, trio—the musicians will perform in their usual formats as well as in collaboration with one another.
Location: Club Voltaire, Kleine Hochstr. 5, Frankfurt
Admission: €15; Jazzinitiative members: €12; Kulturpass: €1
Witch ‘n’ Monk is a duo consisting of Colombian rebel flutist Mauricio Velasierra and British soprano and guitarist Heidi Heidelberg. By combining a diverse range of instruments—traditional Latin American flutes, unconventional vocals, electric guitar, and custom-designed electronics—they create a sound that is entirely their own. The duo has developed an uncompromising, new musical language blending composition and improvisation that shifts fluidly between different forms. Radically distorted flute sounds, anarchic soprano vocals, and analog electronics blend with a jazz-punk hybrid of guitar and bass.
The essence of their collaboration is already reflected in their name: darkness and light, the feminine and the masculine, punk and romance, free form and complex composition. Exploring extremes and creating contrasts is fundamental to their art. Pushing the boundaries of genres—Witch ‘n’ Monk are celebrated in the worlds of jazz and contemporary classical music as well as in DIY and underground circles.
Their latest album, “OUTFOX,” was released in 2025 on FLUID FORM CLUB Records; they also released a series of “singles” in the form of GPS-guided sound walks, which were featured on Bandcamp Daily. Their 2020 album “Witch ’n’ Monk”—released on John Zorn’s label Tzadik Records—was named “Contemporary Album of the Month” by The Guardian and awarded the German Critics’ Prize in the crossover category.
More information about the musicians:
www.witchnmonk.com;
Uli Schiffelholz’s artistic work ranges from rock music to brass band music and classical music, as well as his work as a musician and performer in the theater, though jazz is his true passion. In addition to his work as a composer and arranger for his quartet, he is the drummer for the Thomas Bachmann Group, the Bob Degen Quartet, the J-Sound Project, the group USU SauerISchwarzISchiffelholz, and saxophonist Eric Plande’s band. From 2010 to 2018, he was a member of the Hessischer Rundfunk jazz ensemble, for which he also composed and arranged music. In 2011, he received the City of Frankfurt’s Jazz Fellowship, which enabled him to study in New York. In addition, he has shared the stage in various projects with musicians such as Valentin Garvie, Heinz Sauer, Markus Schieferdecker, Emil Mangelsdorf, John Schröder, Tony Lakatos, Wilson deOliveira, Peter Reiter, Jean-Yves Jung, and others.
www.ulischiffelholz.de
Witch ‘n’ Monk ist das Duo aus dem kolumbianischen Rebellenflötisten Mauricio Velasierra und der britischen Sopranistin und Gitarristin Heidi Heidelberg. Durch die Kombination einer vielfältigen Instrumentierung – traditionelle lateinamerikanische Flöten, unkonventioneller Gesang, E-Gitarre und maßgeschneiderte Elektronik – schaffen sie einen Sound, der ganz und gar ihr eigener ist. Das Duo hat eine kompromisslose, neue musikalische Sprache aus Komposition und Improvisation entwickelt, die fließend zwischen verschiedenen Formen wechselt. Radikal verzerrte Flötenklänge, anarchischer Sopran-Gesang und analoge Elektronik vermischen sich mit einem Jazz-Punk-Hybrid aus Gitarre und Bass.
Die Essenz ihrer Zusammenarbeit spiegelt sich bereits im Namen wider: Dunkelheit und Licht, Weibliches und Männliches, Punk und Romantik, freie Form und komplexe Komposition. Das Erkunden von Extremen und das Schaffen von Kontrasten ist grundlegend für ihr Schaffen. An den Grenzen der Genres bewegend – Witch ‘n’ Monk werden in den Bereichen Jazz und zeitgenössische Klassik ebenso gefeiert wie in DIY- und Underground-Kreisen.
Ihr aktuelles Album „OUTFOX“ erschien 2025 bei FLUID FORM CLUB Records; außerdem veröffentlichten sie eine Reihe von „Singles“ im Format von GPS-geführten Klangspaziergängen, über die Bandcamp Daily berichtete. Ihr Album „Witch ’n’ Monk“ aus dem Jahr 2020 – das auf John Zorns Label Tzadik Records erschien – wurde von The Guardian zum „Contemporary Album of the Month“ gekürt und mit dem Deutschen Kritikerpreis in der Kategorie Crossover ausgezeichnet.
Weitere Infos zu den Musiker*innen:
www.witchnmonk.com;
Die Bandbreite der künstlerischen Arbeit von Uli Schiffelholz reicht von Rockmusik über Blasmusik und klassischer Musik bis hin zur Arbeit als Musiker und Darsteller am Theater wobei sein Herz am meisten für den Jazz schlägt. Neben seiner Arbeit als Komponist und Arrangeur für sein Quartett ist er Schlagzeuger der Thomas Bachmann Group, des Bob Degen Quartets, des J-Sound Projects, der Formation USU SauerISchwarzISchiffelholz und der Band des Saxophonisten Eric Plande Von 2010 – 2018 war er Mitglied des Jazzensembles des Hessischen Rundfunks für das er auch komponiert und arrangiert hat. 2011 erhielt er das Arbeitsstipendium Jazz der Stadt Frankfurt, dass ihm einen Studienaufenthalt in New York ermöglichte. Darüber hinaus hat er sich in unterschiedlichen Projekten mit Musikern wie Valentin Garvie, Heinz Sauer, Markus Schieferdecker, Emil Mangelsdorf, John Schröder, Tony Lakatos, Wilson deOliveira, Peter Reiter, Jean-Yves Jung,… die Bühne geteilt.
APPLAUS AWARD 2024
Bundespreis Applaus Award 2024 — Beste Kleine Spielstätten und Konzertreihen
NEWS
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Musicians of previous openers and formations
Halym Aabo-Kim, Nana Pi Aabo-Kim, Jonathan Aardestrup, Eivind Aarset, Christine Abdelnour, Lina Allemano, Julia Alsdorf (Tanz) Bülent Ates, Christoph Aupperle, Thomas Bachmann, Jan Bang, Nik Bärtsch, Matthias Bauer, Savas Bayrak, Lucía María Rubio Belda (Tanz), Isabelle Bodenseh, Alicia Bonell (Tanz), Michael Bossong(†), Big Breeezy, Thomas Breuer, Caspar Brötzmann, Paul Cannon, Nico Chientaroli, Anushka Chkheizde, Tony Clark, Max Clouth, Chris Corsano, Elisabeth Coudoux, Marcel Daemgen, Marlies Debacker, Matthias TC Debus, Bob Degen, Christopher Dell, Erwin Ditzner, Kit Downes, Hamid Drake, Xaver Dunzte (Tanz), Maria Dybbroe, Mia Dyberg, Nigel Edwards, Izabella Effenberg, Peter Feil(†), Jörg Fischer, Rudi Fischerlehner, Fred Frith, Fe Fritschi, Valentin Garvie, Bernhard Gehrke, Gregor Glogowski, Philipp Gropper, Martin Götte, Igor Grabez, Sebastian Gramss, Frank Gratkowski, Devin Gray, Gerhard Gschlößl, Daniel Guggenheim, Fred Guntermann, Fabian Habicht, Katharina Hamp, Peter Hanson, Alfred 23 Harth, Ruben Hausmann, Shay Hazan, Heidi Heidelberg, Nicola Hein, Frederich Helbing, Christopher Herrmann, Matthias Hoch, Matt Hollenberg, Oscar Jan Hoogland, Marie Houssin (Tanz), Carl Ludwig Hübsch, Shahzad Ismaily, Lutz Jahnke, Jazzmadass, Salim Javaid, Jo Jena, Wilbert de Joode, Willi Kappich, Roger Kintopf, Aki Kitajima, Naoko Kikuchi, Henri Klein (Tanz), Peter Klohmann, Stefan Kohmann, Athina Kontou, Liz Kosack, Burkard Kunkel, Kathrin Lambert, Raphael Languillat, Christof Lauer, Sonia Lautenbacher (Tanz), Lömsch Lehmann, Martin Lejeune, Gunnar Lettow, Christian Lillinger, Carme Lopez, Abril Lukac (Tanz), Andrea Maria Maeder (Tanz), Rudi Mahall, Dominik Mahnig, Dirk Marwedel, Felix Mayer, Annick Moerman, Michael Moore, Camila Nebbia, Paal Nilssen-Love, Oliver Potratz, Puschan Mousavi Malvani, Frederik Maul, Heiner Metzger, Nikolai Muck, Matthias Muche, Sana Nagano, Ali Neander, Andreas Neubauer, Mani Neumeier, Etienne Nillesen, Uwe Oberg, Richard Oberscheven (Tanz), Eric Plandé, Maria Portugal, Lucy Railton, Christian Ramond, Emma Rasmussen (Tanz), Ada Rave, Ulrich Raupach, Wolfgang Reimers, Vitold Rek, Michael Riessler, Bertram Ritter, Jan Roder, Guilherme Rodrigues, Isabel Rößler, Chris Rücker, Eric Ruffing, Olaf Rupp, Páula Sánchez, Georgia Sassone (Tanz) Silvia Sauer, Heinz Sauer, Felicitas Schauer, Uli Schiffelholz, Wolfgang Schliemann, Sue Schlotte, Martin „Schmiddi“ Schmidt, Daniel Schmitz, Britta Schönbrunn (Tanz), Matthias Schubert, John Schröder, Ulrike Schwarz, Aleksandra M. Ścibor Infinity (Tanz), Khadim Seck, Danny Sher, Angelika Sheridan, Emilie Škrijelj, Dennis Sekretarev, Elliot Sharp, Aleksandar Skoric, Jasper Stadhouders, Sebastian Sternal, Malina Stieghorst (Tanz), Mieko Suzuki, Peter Stock, Tassos Tataroglu, Ziv Taubenfeld, Christof Thewes, Hasan O Tuna, Jan-Filip Tupa, Birgit Ulher, Harvey Valdes; Els Vandeweyer, Mauricio Velasierra, Luis Vicente, Matthias Vogt, Luise Volkmann, Alexander v. Schlippenbach, Marta Warelis, Rainer Weber, Ingo Weiß, Uschi Wentzell, Bastian Weinig, Jürgen Werner, Jonas Westergaard, Katharina Wiedenhofer (Tanz), Philipp Wildenhues, Georg Wolf, Jürgen Wuchner(†), Tizia Zimmermann, Eva Zöllner, Kathrin Zurborg
Guidelines for artists who wish to apply:
We welcome applications from musicians and will add them to our applicant list.
We will only contact applicants if we are interested. Unfortunately, we cannot accommodate requests for specific tour dates.
Please send applications to fim-ffm@gmx.net
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